NOT KNOWING THE MUMBAI HERITAGE AND CULTURE ;
WOULD LEAD ALL OUR BICYCLES OF HISTORY TO A PUNCTURE ,
SO , WHY NOT TRY TO TREASURE....
THIS ANCIENT MUMBAI CULTURE !
A workshop had been organised by RAMNARAIN RUIA COLLEGE for the students to know and preserve the ANCIENT MUMBAI CULTURE. May it be indulging into the tastes of Mumbai, the food habits, the variety, or be it the known CROWDED LOCAL TRAINS whose fun has to be experienced by one left all the students mesmerised not only by the lectures but also by the visits by the experts.
It is very true that " a case is long forgotten but the qualifying is remembered for ever " . This was highlighted to us in a lecture given by DR. KURUSH DALAL an eminent archeologist . He briefed us about the 1st inhabitants of MUMBAI and their lifestyle , dining habits . The reason behind BOMBAY given to the PORTUGUESE and then handed over to the BRITISH . The influence of PORTUGUESE on the people living in BOMBAY , their culture , the traditions etc. What made a sudden increase in the cultivation of COTTON in INDIA ? The various migrants to BOMBAY mainly from the KONKAN ( belonging to the lower strata of the society) , SINDHI'S , PUNJABIS , PARSIS , SOUTH INDIANS .
The cooking style of the BHANDARIS who were basically the TADI BUSINESSMEN and their unique conversion of TADI into DESI DARU ,which can be used for cooking food like fish and meat .
The fact that VADAPAV is basically a PORTUGUESE dish and the only Indian ingredient in vadapav is ' MUSTARD SEEDS ' rest all the ingredients were introduced to the Indians by the Portuguese .
The Resemblance of SAMOLENA CHEESE CAKE in the PATHARI COMMUNITY. Thelove for dry fruits by PARSIS and maximum use of CHICK PEAS .
A sudden change from the PORTUGUESE style of cooking to that of BRITISH style had a drastic change in the cooking process. Mostly the BRITISH style food was mainly boiled and had a predominant use of eggs .
Introduction of INDIAN NATIONAL BEVERAGE i.e. CHAI to India from China in exchange of opium for the tea imported to India and silver in exchange of opium which was exported to China . BABA BUDAN'S bringing of 7 raw COFFEE BEANS from port of MOCHA , YAMEN while coming back to HAJ .
Evolvement of IRANI CAFES in INDIA. Success of PUNJABI food in India mostly the samosas , chole puri , butter chicken, tandoori etc .makes all our mouths water .....
Emergence of South Indian food in India like the sambar , the dosas , the chutneys, the vadas etc .left all of us just in deep thoughts about the varieties of foodstuffs found in MUMBAI....
Thus lecture was not only a refreshing one but also one that made us ponder on the varieties of the original dishes which are now modified as time passed by and due to the next generations having a modern look towards all the dishes .. We all hope that we find some original recipes which if not found then can be termed as ' LOST RECIPES ' ....
- UMA K.
